Planning For Project Life 2013

If you flipped through my Project Life right now, you'd see pictures, journaling and little bits and pieces placed into most of the slots. You'd also see some gaps here and there, and occasionally, entire weeks missing. It's incomplete and far from perfect but I'd still let you flip through it because I'm darn proud of it.

I shared my thoughts on Project Life earlier this year and I still feel the same way. As I mentioned in the original post, doing PL this year was a test run for me and I'm hoping next year will be even better.

It has been frustrating not being able to keep up. My whole process would be so much more efficient if I could print my photos at home, but that's something I'll have to work around. However, I still think this is one of the most enjoyable projects I've had all year and it's definitely something I want to do again.

I'm hoping next year will be a lot smoother and I'll be able to keep up enough to share my weeks more regularly. In order for that to happen, I have to plan ahead and that includes shopping!

These are the supplies I used this year:

1. Black Signature Binder | 2. Design A Page Protectors | 3. Variety Pack Page Protectors
 4. 3x4 Grid Cards | 5. My Stash

Black Signature Binders | I loved the classic, timeless look of these black binders. I envisioned myself using the same binders for every year I do Project Life and having an entire shelf full of them. It's sleek, clean and a safe option.

Design A Page Protectors | This design seems to be the most popular, and it's easy to work with. I purchased two large packs (60 each) and that's just enough to get you through the year if you do a two-page spread per week.

Variety Pack Page Protectors | I got this for variety in case I wanted to change up the configuration of my inserts. So far, I've only used one or two.

3x4 Grid Cards | Perfect size for jotting down little notes and quotes. I mostly used these cards to record Nathan's quotes and do quick overviews of our weeks.

My own stash | Instead of purchasing a core kit this year, I shopped my own stash and made my own inserts and cards. This worked out really well for me and I made a small dent in my collection.

I had a good system going on this year using these supplies. I plan to keep things mostly the same for next year with a few minor changes. The format will basically be the same, I'll just have a better idea of the content I want to include.

This is my shopping list for 2013*:
*This is more like a wish list. I'd really love to place my order soon because things are starting to sell out and you have to factor in shipping time, but I'm still getting over the sticker shock (I'd be paying half of what I'm paying now if I was still in Canada!!). And let's face it, when you have zero income, all your shopping lists are just wish lists so I really appreciate when you use my affiliate links!

1. Seafoam Binder | 2. Design A Page Protectors | 3. 3x4 Blank Cards | 4. Seafoam Core Kit | 5. My Stash

Seafoam Binder | I changed my mind about having an entire shelf of the same black binders. I've decided that while having all the same black binders is a good, "safe" option, I need a bit of colour in my life.

Page Protectors | I'll stick with the double pack of Design A's again next year and maybe I'll be brave enough to pull out from the variety pack a little more.

3x4 Blank Cards | I still have some grid cards left over so I'm getting the blank ones for a little variety. I'm hoping to get Nathan more involved this year and these would be perfect for him to write a little note or draw a picture on.

Seafoam core kit | Elise Blaha Cripe designed some pretty awesome cards and I love the colours she used so I might splurge and get the core kit this year.

My Stash | I'll be digging into my stash again this year to supplement that cards in the core kit. I'm also looking to branch out a little and buy some products from little paper and stamp shops that have been popping up all over the internet. I love supporting small business!


Hopefully with a year of experience under my belt, my process will be more streamlined. The idea is still to keep things simple and to get things done.